Donald Trump supporters continue to claim that he won a huge Electoral College victory. In reality, his EV margin was historically low, in the bottom quintile for presidential victors over the course of American history.

I am reminded of the Hillary Clinton supporters insisting throughout the summer and fall, and some to this day, that she won a “landslide” primary victory, that “it wasn’t even close.” One famous article claimed that there was nothing notable about Bernie Sanders’ performance because it is common for there to be a leftist insurgent candidate in Democratic presidential primaries – an argument akin to claiming that there was nothing noteworthy about Dustin Pedroia’s 2008 MVP season because the Red Sox always field a second baseman. In reality, Hillary Clinton had the second-smallest margin of victory of any Democratic nominee since the party began choosing nominees through the electoral process.

Gaslighting about electoral margins. Denying the influence of an outside force that put a thumb on the scale for a preferred candidate. Fake news stories picked up and amplified by internet sources with a rooting interest. It all has me just about ready to throw a chair.

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I think they have difficulty recognizing when they behave that way, because their self-image is as powerless outsiders (what could possibly make someone more of a political outsider than being a woman?!?), so they don’t take into account the way their status as the party establishment brings power dynamics into play.